Report expects better Michigan deer hunting season this year

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File photo

Report expects better Michigan deer hunting season this year

File photo

LANSING, Mich. (AP) — Last winter’s relatively mild temperatures are offering hope that this year’s deer hunting season will see improvements from last year.

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources on Thursday released its 2016 Michigan Deer Hunting Prospects report. The report notes that the 2015 season, while seeing a drop in hunter numbers, ended with a slight increase in harvest from 2014.

Hunting success decreased in the Upper Peninsula while increasing across the entire Lower Peninsula.

Michigan saw severe, prolonged winters in 2012, 2013 and 2014, so numbers are expected to be down in the coming years in the U.P. The reports notes the mild winter last year, however, offers hope hunters may experience slightly better success this year.